moparnut
Administrator
1963 Studebaker GT Hawk - $16,490 - Saint James, Long Island, NY - 1963 Studebaker GT Hawk With R2 (supercharged) option - A Certified Milestone Automobile with a unique story...and an excellent value for the alert buyer or collector.This distictive and beautiful automobile has been my pride and joy for seven years. During that time, I have thoroughly enjoyed driving it and showing it. It has often drawn crowds when parked, and when I have cruised with it on the highway, people have let me know with their smiles and beeping horns that they are thrilled to witness such a masterpiece of style and engineering. It has won "Best of Show" and "First Place in Class" awards, and its Arizona "life" before I took guardianship of it was long and dry. The R2 option on this car provides a special block/piston combination (for a slightly-modified compression ratio), a Paxton supercharger, power disc brakes, power steering, a Borg-Warner 4-speed transmission with floor shift, dual exhausts, "twin traction" (Posi) rear end, and nearly 300 horsepower. According to Studebaker records I have in my possession, this is the fourth GT Hawk made with this highly desirable and rare combination. And, I have the original build-sheet for the car, which clearly denotes this option, and others, as part of its original construction. It was skillfully repainted during its last years in Arizona the correct Champagne gold color, and the seats and carpeting were replced with NOS original materials about eight years ago. It all goes together beatifully, as the famed designers Raymond Loewy and Brooks Stevens intended.
But alas...it is time for me to part with it. And I believe there will be a person out there who sees the great opportunity here, and seizes it.
Some time ago, I noticed white smoke emanating from the right exhaust tip, and, upon disassembly of the engine, discovered that the #2 cylinder wall was cracked. After much research, I located a new-old-stock engine block with fitted pistons and rings in, of all places, South Bend Indiana. It was still in the original Studebaker factory packing crate when it arrived here on Long Island. Let me say this...Cosmoline works! Fifty years after it was cast, honed, fitted with pistons and rings, and crated...it is in incredible, like-new condition. The cross-hatching on the cylinder walls looks like it was done yesterday. And this is a true factory-supplied "replacement" block, as it has no serial number on the machined boss designed to receive it. Studebaker would supply these blocks to dealers to address exactly this situation. It was expected that all of the components from the original engine (other than the pistons and rings) would be transferred to this new block; it would be marked with the original engine's serial number, and this assembly would be installed in the vehicle. That was my plan. But financial challenges put that plan on "hold". Both engines' parts are all carefully labeled and packaged, ready for assembly and installation. But I have decided to sell the entire "package" in its current format, rather than invest the time and money (likely to be around $5-6,000 if done by others) into this project. Hagerty and NADA price guides indicate that R2-outfitted GT Hawks in good-to-excellent condition are currently valued at between $20,200 and $35,500. When running, this car was easily considered to be a "2" or "2+". and it can be that again, with some effort, and some money invested in it.
So, here is my offer: The current listed price is far below the fair market value for a 1963 GT Hawk in this condition. I recognize that not everyone will have the skill, or wherewithal, or even the desire to embark on a project of this scope. But if you do, you could have one of the finest examples of this awesome automobile. So if you are rteady to own a great car at a great price, contacvt me immediately, as I believe it will be sold quickly.
Should you have any questions, feel free to contact me. Serious inquiries will receive my immediate and courteous response.
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